Wehkoja
sage
Reged: 05/06/07
Posts: 222
Loc: Finland
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As a owner of 80mm super apo (wich will be used for photography.!) So now I seek something absolutley great "why not fenomenal" refractor for visual use, and it has to have outstanding mechanical quality great optics, and almost built like a tank  !!! something between 100mm --> 120mm would be great!
examples:
- Takahashi ?
- TeleVue TV 102(IS version)
- Stellarvue 102ED
- Stellarvue - SV115T35
Sorry but im not into William optics at this time!
Thank you for reading and hope to hear your opinions from your experience!
Edited by Wehkoja (09/03/08 02:33 PM)
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Mike Clemens
Post Laureate
Reged: 11/26/05
Posts: 3058
Loc: Wasilla, Alaska 61N
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Built like a tank is bad... built like the space station is better... absolute lightest but super high quality and reliable.
4" to 5" scopes I prefer (and guesses at prices):
Televue 102... $1300 to $1700 used
TMB100/8 ..... $1750 to $2500 used
TMB105/6.2 .... $1750 to $2700 used
Tak FS102 .... $1650 to $2100 used
Tak FS128 .... $2700 to $3500 used
With an 80mm super APO on hand, I would find a used FS128 for nirvana.
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GeorgeDuke
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 04/24/03
Posts: 1175
Loc: PARADISE! (So.Florida)
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I am sorry Jani but there is no such thing as the "best" anything! For you, the best would be the one you pick as best. Anyone else will pick the best for them and if 100 people all respond there will be almost 100 different "best" picks! Who is the "best" Wife? I think we will all pick our own Wife as best!
To answer your original question, I say the SV102ED2 is the "best". Mostly because I have one and it is the "best" I can afford!
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George
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LX200GPS 203mm f10
StellarVue SV102ED2 Feathertouch Ser#0018
Celestron 130mm f15.4 Mak
LXD75 GOTO with Orion 16" pier extension
Desert Sky DSV1 dual head ALT-AZ mount
Baader Hyperion 8mm ,13mm, 21mm and 8-24mm Zoom + FTRs
2" GSO ED barlow, Orion 2" Prism Diag. 2" WO Dielectric
Chinese Scopes, Chinese Eyepieces, Chinese Wife, Love them all!
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Teal'c
Indeed
Reged: 08/02/05
Posts: 3486
Loc: TN
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Quote:
Built like a tank is bad... built like the space station is better... absolute lightest but super high quality and reliable.
4" to 5" scopes I prefer (and guesses at prices):
Televue 102... $1300 to $1700 used
TMB100/8 ..... $1750 to $2500 used
TMB105/6.2 .... $1750 to $2700 used
Tak FS102 .... $1650 to $2100 used
Tak FS128 .... $2700 to $3500 used
With an 80mm super APO on hand, I would find a used FS128 for nirvana.
Tank can withstand gravity....can a Space station? 
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Etch-O-Sketch and an eraser. Although....the eraser dosn't work 
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bugugly
newbie
Reged: 09/03/08
Posts: 4
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I have two, a sky watcher 6" f/5 for double use as a finder scope on my 20", and as a stand alone wide field milkyway sweeper. Absolutely great for that. I purchased a 6" f/12 optic set, mine was made by John Dobbins in England, but you can find a set with lens cell on that well known bidding site, for around $700. I bought a astrophysics focuser used, an aluminum tube, and assembled my own scope. Now while these scopes are your fancy-do apo's, they give great performance when used with they'r respective magnifications for they'r respective focal lengths. Chinese optics arn't bad.
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nirvanix
sage
Reged: 06/07/07
Posts: 306
Loc: Saskatoon, SK
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By your description of what you want, I'd say you are willing to spend mucho dinaros. TEC 140 or Tak 130 are in the $5k range, and you'll get great performance.
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WO M102ED S.V. (The Pearl Princess)
Antares 10" Dob (HMS LightBucket)
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'Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it.' - John Lennon
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Preston Smith
Military Observer
Reged: 04/24/05
Posts: 2155
Loc: Eureka, Pa
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Quote:
So now I seek something absolutely great "why not phenomenal" refractor for visual use, and it has to have outstanding mechanical quality great optics, and almost built like a tank !!! something between 100mm --> 120mm would be great!
examples:
- Stellarvue - SV115T35
I'll let you know in about two months or less! I'm number one on the wait list for the SV115! 
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Preston Smith, Eureka, Pa
For now we see through a glass, darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; but then shall I know, even as also I am known. 1 Corinthians 13:12
Stellarvue SV115T
Stellarvue NHII, SV70, F50 "Sparrow Hawk 1"
1960s Unitron 160 102mm f15
1950s Unitron 114 60mm f15
1980 Edmund "Voyager" 60mm f8
1960s Tasco 15TE 76mm f15
1960s Tasco 7TE-5 60mm f16
1950s Asahi-Pentax 50mm f12
More refractors!
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BCB
Post Laureate
Reged: 11/24/03
Posts: 3833
Loc: Look over your shoulder
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To me, the best one is the one your REALLY happy with, and will use consistantly the most.. 
I have 2.. (1) An 8" Newt, which hasn't seen much use since the (#2) AT102ED came home..
That in itself should be telling..
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Mark
Making people sorry they asked since 1967
Astro-Tech 102ED
Orion 8" F5 Newt w/Moonlight CR-2 focuser
SVP mount w/Meade 497 Autostar GOTO mod
Treeline Observatory
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drshr
sage
Reged: 06/09/08
Posts: 207
Loc: Australia
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TV101 must be in with a shout! 
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Doc
14" F5 DOB.
6" f5 Achro.
TMB/APM 105mm F6.2 CF APO.
"In order to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe"
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Wehkoja
sage
Reged: 05/06/07
Posts: 222
Loc: Finland
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- Stellarvue - SV115T35
I'll let you know in about two months or less! I'm number one on the wait list for the SV115!
That scope is surley looking good! hope to hear your opinions!
Anyone know a good Telscope shop in Orlando, Florida? or in Weston area? We will make a vacation trip to Orlando and Weston for 2 weeks, so it would be very interesting to see the scopes live before buy! (As the internet pictures donīt tell the whole story)
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TMB Megrez 80/480
Ethos 13mm
Powermate 2" 2x
Powermate 4x
Heq5pro
WO 2" Dielectric (Carbon)
TV 2" Dielectric Everbrite
Nikon Monarch 8.5x56
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pennyandchris
professor emeritus
Reged: 01/30/07
Posts: 506
Loc: Horsham, England
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Quote:
TV101 must be in with a shout!
I have a Ranger which is nice and portable, quick to set up etc, but, if I could afford another refractor it'd be a TV101 or similar. I wouldn't normally travel with it, but I'd still like my 'scopes and mounts not to take too much time and effort to move to the garden, set up and use.
Of course, if I ever got a bigger house/garden with an permanent observatory that might change.....
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Orion UK OMC140 Mak Cass
TeleVue Ranger
Coronado Ha and CaK PSTs
Meade LXD75 mount
Ambermile alt-az mount on wooden surveyors tripod
Manfrotto 074 photo tripod with 501 head
+ various binocs
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Fomalhaut
member
Reged: 08/16/08
Posts: 41
Loc: Switzerland
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The very best?
=> Currently available: Tak TSA-102!!!
=> Former times: Zeiss-APQ-100/1000 or 100/640, Tak FC-100/1000N; Tak FCT-100/640, TMB 100/800.
CS!
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current:
Tak FS-60c (guidescope for:)
Tak FCT-100/640 on Tak EM-10
Zeiss 7X42-T*P-Dialyt + Nikon 18x70 Binoculars
Coronado Maxscope 40
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Rusty
Postmaster
Reged: 08/06/03
Posts: 16410
Loc: Brooker, FL
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Quote:
Anyone know a good Telscope shop in Orlando, Florida? or in Weston area? We will make a vacation trip to Orlando and Weston for 2 weeks, so it would be very interesting to see the scopes live before buy! (As the internet pictures donīt tell the whole story)
Unfortunately, there are no astronomy shops in the Orlando area. There is a club, South Florida Amateur Astronomers Association in Sunrise and an observatory in Weston (I think).
I'd contact them for places to shop.
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N11GPS Fastar
TOA-130S
MK66 Std
Vintage C5
Megrez II 80mm ED Triplet APO
SolarMax 40
NJP Temma II
Sirius EQ-G
ST8XE/CFW-8(LRGBHa)/AO-7/DF-2/STV Dlx/ST237a/350D (Unmodded)/Mallincam Color Hyper Plus/DSI III Color/DSI II Pro
Two not-spoiled Golden Retrievers - Maggie and Casey
Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering. - Arthur C. Clarke
Edited by Rusty (09/04/08 10:11 PM)
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Jan Owen
sage
Reged: 02/12/06
Posts: 233
Loc: Sun City West, Arizona
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What GEORGE said!!!
I probably wouldn't pick SV, but I'd say the response was *close enough*...
Jan
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Keep on looking up...
Meade 60mm f/15 achro refractor from WAY back...
Vernonscope 94mm f/7 Brandon triplet APO
Orion EON ED 120mm f/7.5
Celestron 5.5" f/3.6 Comet Catcher Schmidt-Newt
8" f/6 Newtonian w/Spooner optics on Atlas G mount
Meade 10" f/10 SCT
12" f/5 Meade LightBridge Dob/Newt
13.1" f/4.5 Coulter Odyssey early Dob/Newt
Many eyepieces and accessories
Always lusting after large MCT, but never buy one
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Wehkoja
sage
Reged: 05/06/07
Posts: 222
Loc: Finland
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Quote:
Quote:
Anyone know a good Telscope shop in Orlando, Florida? or in Weston area? We will make a vacation trip to Orlando and Weston for 2 weeks, so it would be very interesting to see the scopes live before buy! (As the internet pictures donīt tell the whole story)
Unfortunately, there are no astronomy shops in the Orlando area. There is a club, South Florida Amateur Astronomers Association in Sunrise and an observatory in Weston (I think).
I'd contact them for places to shop.
Thank you Rusty for the information!
Itīs a tough descision to make, but now im leaning to Televue, Meade 127, or a secondhand Tak!
If i canīt make the descision then why not try Maks&Cats
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TMB Megrez 80/480
Ethos 13mm
Powermate 2" 2x
Powermate 4x
Heq5pro
WO 2" Dielectric (Carbon)
TV 2" Dielectric Everbrite
Nikon Monarch 8.5x56
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WarrenS
sage
Reged: 03/04/08
Posts: 324
Loc: Hudson Valley New York
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Of course the Televue and Tak scopes are top line scopes, but the Meade 127 EDT is an excellent scope for the money. I have it as an Astro-Tech and I can attest to the "built like a tank" aspect as mine has already fallen off the mount due to my carelessness and hasn't suffered optically.
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Warren
Astro-Tech 127EDT
Celestron Onyx 80ED
C8 (circa 1983 Orange Tube)
Atlas EQ-G
Canon 135mm F2.8
Canon 40D, Astronomik CLS clip filter
Leica, Minolta binos
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Wehkoja
sage
Reged: 05/06/07
Posts: 222
Loc: Finland
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Meade should be very good it is quite cheap too and gatherīs light quite well...but the TV 102 iis is surley something that could be the thing for me, then again i can change my mind very quickly!
Takīs do have great optics based on reviews but isnīt really attractive looking to my eyes...yes i know..."look trough the scope! not at the scope  "
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TMB Megrez 80/480
Ethos 13mm
Powermate 2" 2x
Powermate 4x
Heq5pro
WO 2" Dielectric (Carbon)
TV 2" Dielectric Everbrite
Nikon Monarch 8.5x56
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warf
professor emeritus
Reged: 10/25/04
Posts: 709
Loc: Wisconsin
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http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/showthreaded.php/Cat/0/Number/2624353/page/0/view/collapsed/sb/5/o/all/vc/1
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Marsh
Celestron NS 11 GPS, Denk Standard Binoviewer, Pair of Denk 21 EP, Denk PowerSwitch Diagonal, Denk PST Corrector, Coronado PST Double Stacked, WO ZS80 Anniversary,Celestron 15x70 Binoculars
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Greg Morrison
super member
Reged: 11/16/04
Posts: 149
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I was considering picking one of these up but they seem very top heavy and quite hefty once fully loaded. The 120ED doublets are starting to have more appeal because of this.
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Wehkoja
sage
Reged: 05/06/07
Posts: 222
Loc: Finland
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Thank you Warf for the link! I did read it and now i changed my mind again! As many of you already said: Takahashi is the one!
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TMB Megrez 80/480
Ethos 13mm
Powermate 2" 2x
Powermate 4x
Heq5pro
WO 2" Dielectric (Carbon)
TV 2" Dielectric Everbrite
Nikon Monarch 8.5x56
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